1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to barbecue grille assemblies, and more particularly to such an assembly having adjustability for controlling the amount of fat that may be allowed to drop into the flames of a cooker upon which the grille is placed.
2. Description of Related Art
The following art defines the present state of this field:
Van Horn, II, U.S. Pat. No. 4,598,634 describes a portable broiler and griddle apparatus which is placed on top of the burners on a cooking range to convert the range interchangeably into a broiler for flame broiling or a griddle for frying. The apparatus comprises a three-sided fire box within which rests interchangeably a broiling grid or a griddle on which the food is cooked. When the grid is in place for broiling, a removable base unit is placed underneath it to catch a substantial portion of the grease dripping from the broiling food. Both the grid and base have openings throughout which are staggered to allow a small portion of grease to drop down and ultimately reach the burners, to impart a charbroiled flavor to the food. The griddle, grid, and base are positioned at an angle to drain off grease into a removable attached grease cup at the front of the fire box.
Georgaris, U.S. Pat. No. 5,044,266 related to a barbecue grill and more specifically to a two-tiered barbecue grill system which uses water troughs strategically placed below the cooking surface so as to catch all of the melted fats thus preventing the grease from coming into direct contact with the hot coals below and causing undesirable flare-ups. Meats barbecued on conventional grills over charcoal have always resulted in troublesome flare-ups which burn and char the meat. These flare-ups have always proved difficult to contain, control, or eliminate. It is the primary object of my invention to provide a barbecue grill system that is capable of eliminating these undesirable flare-ups.
Weil, U.S. Pat. No. 5,363,752 describes a cooking grill for cooking over open flame having multiple parallel grids which are capable of displacement relative to each other, which the grids, comprised of channels which are offset from each other. The displacement of the grids and the offset of the channels controls the amount of flame which reaches foods placed upon a top grid.
Carstensen, U.S. Pat. No. 5,237,914 describes a cooking grill assembly adapted to be placed on the upper work surface of a barbecue heating unit. The grill assembly consists of two overlapping slotted plates, a grill component and an underlying drip pan component releasably hinged together along one margin. The slots are offset from each other in such a manner that the molten fat dripping downwardly through the slots of the upper grill plate will be intercepted by the underlying drip pan plate and conveyed to a fat accumulation trough on the latter. The arrangement is such that the smoke and other combustion vapors can rise upwardly through the slots of both grill components and flavor the meat in the usual manner, without danger of igniting the molten grease resulting from the cooking operation.
Norton, U.S. Pat. No. 3,443,510 describes a barbecuing device having a grill assembly comprised of an upper apertured grill member and a lower apertured grill member with the apertures of each member being misaligned with respect to each other whereby meat drippings that normally fall from the meat into the fire are caught by the lower grill member and transferred to a gravy saver reservoir. Heat, smoke, and radiant energy can pass upwardly through the grill, yet the meat drippings cannot pass downwardly through the entire grill assembly and accordingly combustion of the meat drippings is eliminated.
Tucker, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,092,015 relates to cooking utensils, and more particularly to that one utensil usually associated with outdoor cooking namely, the barbecue grill. The invention provides a barbecue grill that will capture the true flavor and aroma of the meat or fish that is being barbecued and return it to the same for the full enjoyment of all concerned. The invention also provides a barbecue grill that will capture the true flavor and aroma of whatever is being cooked on the same without reverting to a complicated structure expensive to manufacture and purchase. It also returns the heat and vapor from the food, by reason of it circulating through and around the trough and drip bars thus giving it, the food, the desired additional flavor and is easy to keep clean at all times, and with a minimum of effort. It is also adaptable to existing structures for holding the grill over the coals or fire and can be manufactured in any desired size and shape.
Grimshaw, U.S. Pat. No. 3,183,823 relates to cooking grills for food such as steaks, chops, and the like. The invention provides a grill which can be built up from bars and which can be cleaned easily. The grill is for use over a fire, and on which the deposit of grease is kept to a low level, the cooking operation being speedy and effective. According to this invention, there is provided an under-fired cooking grill, comprising a plurality of transverse bars each having an upper surface corrugated or ridged from front to rear, and a plurality of spaced apart projections formed so that a bar can be supported by the projections on the rear of a bar in front, said projections being arranged so that a plurality of small apertures is provided through the built-up grill, means for the support of said grill above a fire space being provided so that the bars slope down from front to rear. Conveniently the bars are supported at each end which ends are formed to cooperate with side supports, so that the grill slopes down from rear to front. Preferably, the upper surface of each bar is ridged or channeled from front to rear. The ridges of bars align so that a plurality of drainage channels is provided as the top surface, and these can lead to a collecting channel at the front of the grill. The bars are interlocked as a rigid structure, and mutually contact to give good head conduction. The front of each bar can be serrated or toothed and is cut away from end to end beneath the serrations. This provides the projections to rest on a bar in front and also a surface (below the projections) on which the rear edge of said front bar can bear, thereby securing good heat conductivity.
Noreck, U.S. Pat. No. 1,010,169 related to improvements in broilers in which the flame is directed at the same time from above and below toward the food to be broiled, and in which the grate and the lower bank of jets may be readily raised toward or lowered from the upper bank of gas jets. A broiler using gas fuel, broiling from above and below at one and the same time, without turning the meat to be broiled, in addition to these advantages admits of adjusting the broiler easily and quickly to all sizes and thicknesses of meat to be broiled, without removing or handling the hot grate, and without stepping or interfering with the operation of broiling.
The prior art teaches the use of double grilles, i.e., one above the other for the purposes of catching grease droppings to prevent flair-ups. However, the prior art does not teach that such a pair of grilles may be adapted to form a first cooking grille enabled for sliding contact with a runoff collecting grille to mutually align apertures in both grilles for advantageously controlling the flow of fluids from the cooking products. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages as described in the following summary.